Hi!

I am going to travel to China on my next vacation and plan to spend 25 days in the country. I should fly into either Peking or Shanghai on May 18 and it's going to be my second trip to the country. I went there 5 months ago, stayed in Peking for 5 days and only got outside the city to visit the Great Wall. This time I plan to explore the west/southwest of the country, the provinces of Sichcuan and Yunnan and Tibet. I know that i am required to hold a special permit to travel to Lhasa and think of applying for the permit some weeks in advance, before my arrival in the country, if possible. I still don't know what would be the most convenient route to take in China, considering the places I am interested in visiting. Also, I plan to take my bike with me, as I would rather go exploring some sites by bicycle than by car, van, bus...etc. I am that kind of adventurous tourist and I specially would like to cycle around Tibet (Lhasa, Shigatse, Gyantse...). However, I have heard that it is not easy to communicate with chinese people (in english) in the countryside, so I plan to hire a guide. So I would be very grateful if anybody could give me some advice about the most suitable route to take in China (would you recommended me to fly to Peking or Shanghai?), places to visit, how I could find a guide and if I am allowed to take my bicycle into the trains or buses. Consider I plan to visit Lijiang, Shangri-la, kunming and Lhasa.

Many thanks (xie-xie)

Marcelo